Sometimes, certain things don’t hit you until it’s almost too late. For me, the thought of the aftermath of graduating is hitting me now, six weeks before I graduate. There are so many things I’m excited to leave behind, but at the same time, I know that I’ll miss at least a few things.
Some things I know I’ll miss for sure are my friends and family. This is my third year at this school, and needless to say, I’m picky. Aside from a couple of bad apples, the few friends I made my first year here are still my closest friends today. I can’t imagine how I would have gotten through the endless hours of studying, the death-like lectures, or even all the petty middle-school drama without them.
I know people who don’t have a small, stable group of friends that they can rely on. I know people who have jumped from friend-group to friend-group. I know people who have one best friend and that’s it. I know people who don’t have any friends at all. I’ve also been through all of these positions, and I can wholeheartedly say that no matter how bad things got at times, I always ended up missing at least one aspect after it was gone. I’m ready to miss my friends, if that makes sense.
I’ll also miss my family, I guess.
Although it’s tough living with them, I can’t imagine not missing them when I move out to grad school in August. It would have been one thing if I was only traveling to another state, but I’m moving to another country, alone, for the first time in my life. I know I’m taking so much for granted right now given the fact that I’ve been born and raised in the same household, circa 1997. I honestly don’t know what I’ll miss about my family yet, and that’s probably because I’ve been “babied” my whole life. I don’t know what it’s like to not live with my parents. I don’t know what it’s like to be independent, but I’ll learn.
I’ll also miss the meaningless little things. The silly snaps, the stupid laughter, the good times. I’ll also probably be internally crying when songs like, “One More Weekend” by The Academy Is or “Good Times” by All Time Low play on shuffle. Little things post-graduation will probably trigger brief, emotional responses from me. That’s why the only thing I can look forward to after graduating is remembering the good times, moving on, taking all the right chances, and feeling alive.